Have you ever been to Anchorage? (Have you ever been to me?)

I'm headed there in November. I'll be there for six days.

Looking forward to it as it's certainly the one state I thought I'd never visit. Give me the lowdown.

 

My buddy went snowmobiling on a glacier while wearing shorts and a T-shirt.

America! Fuck yeah!

I just know that everyone that I have met that has gone there loved it and was amazed at the fun they had.

 

I was there a decade ago for the Great Alaska Shootout. I didn't get to see a whole lot but I will say this -- it was a lot warmer than what I expected for Alaska in November.

I did make a point to go up into the wilderness for a day and check out those snow covered mountains.

 

Same here, though it was 13 years ago for me. Was there for six days, only got out of the city once, but damn, I want to go back.

Weather wasn't terribly cold, but it seemed like there were only about four hours of daylight (10 a.m. to 2 p.m., IIRC).

We took a day trip to Alyeska and the top of the mountain was stunning. Stopped a nature reserve, too, where you could get quite close to some great wildlife, including a Grizzly. Saw bald eagles and mountain goats the entire drive.

We ate a team dinner at the Sourdough Mining Co., a restaurant built in an old gold mine. It was out of season (they're open May-Sept., I think), but the owners had ties to my school and catered a special dinner that was fantastic. I recommend the place as kitschy dining experience with good food.

The Glacier Brewhouse also had great food and I remember the beer being really good, though my idea of "good" at the time consisted almost exclusively of Bud Light and Sam Adams.

Chilkoot Charlie's was a great place to get hammered because it had a bunch of different bars under the same roof, each one with its own distinct style. One was 70s themed, another was western themed, etc. Buddy of mine met a girl there who moved to the East Coast for him a couple months later.

Oh, and be careful at the strip clubs.

 

Yes, I've been. Stayed in a hostel somewhere; don't remember details because it was a 10-day trip that took me across a lot of the state. (Waded in Arctic Ocean.)

I do remember enjoying the Alaska Native Heritage Center.

If you like to fish, look for day trips. I went to Kenai, I think it was, and everyone in the boat caught their limit in about 20 minutes. We landed one more and grilled it in the boat as we watched bears. We'd flown in via a float plane to wherever the heck it was -- just gorgeous and really cool.

I had to wake up at some ungodly hour, but it was a day trip from Anchorage.

No matter what you plan, if you're going to be outdoors, do bring a headlight/flashlight. It'll get dark early.

Also -- and this is where GPS access makes us stupid -- if you do go gallivanting across the state like I did, bring a map. A paper one. I headed out at 3 a.m. or something and realized my GPS batteries were low and I had no idea where the hell I was.

 

I hear Glenn Rice really enjoyed his stay when he went for the Shootout in the late 80s

 

I'm guessing you're there for the shootout, so longer trips out of the city are probably not possible. If you can, though, I'd second a day trip to Alyeska Resort. Beautiful area, and by the time you go it might be ski season.

It's been a few years, but my wife and I enjoyed this cool independent bookstore called Title Wave Books. They're still going strong: http://www.wavebooks.com/

Another cool place we went is a brew pub/movie theater called Bear Tooth Theatrepub: http://beartooththeatre.net/
Besides being a movie theater that serves beer, the pizza next door was pretty good.

Among the places we hiked, I actually liked Earthquake Park, which has views of the mountains across the channel and info about the 1964 Good Friday earthquake. Hopefully in November the mosquitoes will be less savage than when we visited in the summer!

 

Anchorage to me had the quality of Des Moines or Cedar Rapids with a better view. Definitely try and take some sightseeing trips outside the city.

 

I'll second the mention of the Theaterpub. You can order your dinner out in the lobby and they serve it to you at your table during the movie.

Oh, and not only is it a movie theater that serves beer, it serves beer inside the cinema, so you don't miss anything while grabbing another brew. No urinals inside, though, sadly. I saw "Bring It On" there as a second run. I'm sure it was the beers' fault, but I enjoyed the hell out of that schlock-fest.

 

anchorage is definitely a cool place to visit. interesting folks up there. good halibut. and for the nighttime, there's a place called chilkoot charlies that's fun and different. it's a bunch of bars-within-a-bar under one roof. i think the idea is that even in the dead of winter, you can feel like you're bar-hopping just by walking around this one space.

http://www.koots.com/

 

Wasn't 'Have You Ever Been to Anchorage' recorded by Blind Willie Gufman for Shazz Records in 1927?